Wurst’s appearance in the continental cavalcade of cheesy pop and garish costumes sparked controversy in Russia, where some called for state television to edit out Wurst from the finals’ live broadcast.

Although homosexuality was decriminalized in Russia in 1990s, animosity toward gays remains strong in Russia. The county last year passed a law banning the dissemination to minors of so-called "gay propaganda" and routinely rejects applications to hold gay rights demonstrations.

Alexei Maiorov, head of Moscow’s security department, was quoted by the Interfax news agency Thursday as saying the Wurst parade was rejected because of concerns it would provoke clashes between gays and their opponents.

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Republican senatorial hopeful and retired drag queen Steve Wiles (aka Mona Sinclair), who went on the record as supporting the state’s ban on same-sex marriage, failed to win his party’s nomination for state senate this week.

When Austria’s entry takes the stage Thursday at the Eurovision Song Contest in Copenhagen, the spotlight will slowly reveal a lone figure with wide sensual eyes, glossy painted lips, high cheekbones - and a man’s full dark beard.

Forty gay couples in South Dakota applied to be married during the first month following a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized such unions across the country, according to data provided by the state Department of Health.